Brick-setter with self-acting gripping-fingers.



H.B.CR UM.

BRICK SETTER WITH SELF ACTING GRIPPING FINGERS.

APPLICATION HLED MAR. 7, 1912.

Patented Apr. 3,1917.

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H. B. CRUM.

BRICK SETTER WITH SELF ACTING GRIPPING FINGERS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 7. 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

l7v076i5 7", ,5. 69607774 Patented Apr. 3, 1917.

H. B. CRUM.

BRICK SETTER WITH SELF ACTING GRIPPING FINGERS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 7. 19l2.

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ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO RAYMOND C. PENFIELD, OF

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. I

BBiCK-SETTER WITH SELF-ACTING GRIPPING-FINGEBS.

Specification of Letters Fatent.

Patented Apr. 3, 191%.

Application filed man 7, 1912. Serial no. 682,166.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, HoLLIs B. CRUM, a citizen of the United States, andresident of Chicago, county of Cook, State of Illinois, have invented anImprovement in Brick- Setters with Self-Acting Gripping-Fingers, ofwhich the following description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawingsrepresentinglike parts.

My present invention relates to improvements in mechanism for liftingand setting bricks, or the like, of the type wherein a series of spacedapart lifting fingers carried by a lifting frame are adapted to beinserted in passages in the basic layer of a brick stack; suchbasiclayer being for this purpose formed of spaced apart lines of bricks, onwhich the rest of the stack is piled. lln an apparatus of this characterit is necessary that means be provided for gripping the lines of bricksconstituting the bottom layer, so as to lift the same along with and inundisturbed relation to the rest ofthe stack. A prime object of theinvention is to provide a mechanism of this character wherein eachfinger by itself contains the necessary provision for laterally expanding to grip the adjacent walls of the 1 basic brick lines withsuificient'force to lift the same along with the stack as it is raised,

thus dispensing with the elaborate and complicated mechanism heretoforeconsidered necessary for effecting this expanding, gripping action byrelatively movable parts of the lifting frame work or otherwise. Theillustrative form of the mechanism to be set forth is designed forhandling a unit of brick, nine brick long and one deep lengthtaken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, and will be thereafterpointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a bricksetter embodying my improvements;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on line 33 Fig. 7 is a horizontal sectionthrough a lifting finger on line 7-7 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is an elevation of a clamping plate removed;

F'g. 9 is a plan: view of the expanding wedge or cam members removedbottom of a finger;

Fig. 10 is a partial, longitudinal, central from the vertical sectionthrough a finger wherein a modified form of the invention is employed onthe line 1010 of Fig. 11; and

Fig. 11 is a transverse section through a finger having this modifiedform of the invention.

The lifting frame may be of any usual or desired form, being shown asprovided with the usual horizontally extending finger supporting bar'lO,formed with upstanding extensions 11, 12 at either side of its center towhich are bolted vertical lifting bars 13 and stifiening straps 14united at their upper ends, as seen at 15, and having fixed thereto alifting bar 16 with connections 17 to a crane or other lifting andtransferring mechanism. The finger supporting bar 10 is shown asprovided with recessed'seats at 18 to which are bolted a series ofparallel spaced apart fingers 19 extending transversely therefrom, thesefingers being of a length determined by the depth of the brick unitwhich it is desired to handle, and shown as approximately the length ofa single brick, the ends of these fingers being provided with roundedpoints 20, as is usual to facilitate their insertion in the passagesbetween the brick lines. I p Referring first to the form of theinvention shown in Figs. 3 to 9, each finger comprises a main or bodyportion 21, opposite side. clamping plates'22, 23 and expanding partswhich are rigidly fixed by bolting or otherwise to the finger supportingbar, as

seen at 26, and the clamping plates 22,-23 extend over these bent inoverlapping rela tion at their topsas seen at 27, and down along thesides thereof to the bottoms of the wedge portions 24. Theseclampingplates are of relatively thin plate stock and their overlapping topportions 27 are fixed to gether and to a stiffening plate 28 underneathby rivets 29, or the like. The clamping plates are adapted to slide upand down over the body portions 21 and are normally held at an upwardlimit of movement by coil springs 30 shown as fitted in sockets 31 inthe body portions and guided on pins 32 depending from the tops of theplates. Any suitable arrangement of these springs may be provided, twobeing shown for each finger positioned-at similar distances from thelongitudinal center of the finger. Each of the clamping plates 22, 23has projecting inward therefrom, beneath the bod portions 21, brackets33, 34 in which are mounted rollers 35, 36 engageable with oppositelyfacing wedge or cam surfaces 37, 38 respectively on the upper portionsof the members 24, 25; each clamping plate, as shown, has one of thesebrackets and wedge engaging rollers toward eitherend at like distancesfrom its center, and the roller carrying brackets for the oppositeplates are preferably arranged side by side on either end portion, asclearly seen in Fig. 3. As best seen in Figs. 3 and 9, the oppositewedge faces 37, 38 for cooperation with each pair of rollers 35 36 arepreferably formed on a bracket adapted to be secured at'the bottom ofthe finger, by bolts or the like as at 39,

i the bracket member for the inner end of the finger being shown at 40,and that for the 40 outer end of the finger at 41, provided with arounded prow point 42 to correspond with the corresponding prow point 43of the rest of the finger. The clamping plates 22 23 are desirably cutout centrally 45 and at their inner extremlty, as seen at 44, to promotethe resiliency thereof and make them more adaptable for properfrictional engagement with the bricks, and the outer ends of theseplates are likewise cut away at 45 to accommodate the prqw point 43 atthe outer end of the finger.

It may now be understood that the setter having been placed in operativeposition for lifting a stack of bricks, with the several 56 fingersinserted in the respective passages of the basic layer, as liftingimpulse is applied to the setter frame, the top portions 27 of theclamping plates will first come in contact with the body of the stackabove the 60 basic layer and have their upward movement temporarilyarrested, while the body portions 21 compress the springs 30 and slideupward relative to the clamping plates. By this action the rollers 35,36 travel rela- 06 tively downward along the. wedge surfaces of theirlength clamping plates, thus permitting the resili 37 38, thus pressingthe plates 22, 23 outward, as seen in dotted lines .35, and spread-,

ing them sufiiciently to strongly grip the brick lines of the basiclayer. It w1ll be capacity for vertical sliding movement of Y the plates22, 23 relative to the body portions 21 is such that the clamping plateswill exert the requisite clamping force to insure the lifting of thebottom brick lines along with the rest of the stack because. of thepressure exerted thereby on the top portions 27 of the plates.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs; 10 and 11, the clampingplate portions 22', 23 are shown as formed of a single piece of platestock bent to U-form for embracing the sides of the body portion 21 ofthe finger, the top 27 being flattened for engagement with the bottom ofthe main portion of the stack above the basic layer, as in the precedingform. The springs 30 in this form are arranged to seat in the bodyportion 21 and to press upwardly on the top 27 as before described. Inthis form of the invention a bottom portion 46 is fixed beneath the bodyportion of the finger by screw bolts 47 or the like, and this portionhas fitted therein central. bearings, shown as rollers 48 for engagementwith bent plates 49,50 riveted or otherwise secured at their lower endsto the respective clamping plate portions 22, 23, as seen at 51, theinwardly oppositely extending bends of these plates forming oppositeinclines over and in position to be engaged by the rollers 48, aslifting impulse is applied to the body portions of the ngers to movethem upward relative to the clamping plates, while the clamping plateshave their movement arrested by the resistance of the stack. The upperends of the bent plates 49, 50 are shown as formed with return bends 52,so' that they rest against and have sliding bearing on the ency of thebent or wedge plates 49, 50 to be added to that of the clamping plates,and making the gripping action of the plates a still more resilient andself-adapting one.

In each of the forms of the invention described, it is to be noted thateach finger has wholly self-contained mechanism for effecting thelateral grip upon the basic layers .at the same time that the lift isapplied to the main portion of the stack, so that no specialconstruction of finger supporting frame is required, or any cooperatlveparts or attachments needed thereon. My improved fingers are thusadapted to be applied to any desired form of supporting frame which maybe of the greatest simplicity, and any danger of breakage which mightpccur is limited to the particular finger involved, which can be quicklyre- 130 memes placed byi'a duplicate, without in any way jury and noopportunity for chips or for eign matter to get into the working partsand obstruct them.

Having described my. invention, what I claim as new and: desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. Brick lifting apparatus of the kind de-- scribed, comprising aplurality of parallel lifting fingers adapted to be positioned under astack of brick, each finger having a rigid portion and a top portionyieldingly sustained on said rigid portion and adapted to beself-seating against a brick stack independehtly of each adjacentfinger, pivoted expansible side clamping members carried by each fingerand means to expand said side members by the relative movement of thetop portion with said rigid portion of the lifting finger.

2. Brick lifting apparatus of the ln'nd described, comprising a liftingframe with a plurality of --spaced-apart, brick-engaging fingers,extending from" Said frame and adapted to be'positio'ned under a brickstack, each finger including a rigid-portion and a top portion, yieldingmeans to sustain said longitudinal and self-seating action of eachyielding topportion relatively to its rigid portion is provided, whenthe a paratus is lifted independently of each adJacent lifting finger,yielding side members carried by said top portion, and meansconsi'stingin wedge members to move leach expansi'ble s1de' memberthrough the depression of the top portion on its rigid portion duringinitiation of the brick-lifting movement.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HOLLIS B; on

Witnesses:

. B. H. WHITTEL, E. DAVIDSON.

I Will top portion on said rigid portion at a plu rality of points,whereby an independent r

